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Bustard! 6 birds jilted by Gujarat's only eligible male

The species is on the brink of extinction in Gujarat after the only eligible bachelor went missing last year.

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The disappearance of the sole male Great Indian Bustard (GIB) has sounded the death knell for the ambitious captive breeding programme, and turned the state's six female GIBs into the avian equivalent of Miss Havisham.

The species is on the brink of extinction in Gujarat after the only eligible bachelor went missing last year. There was hope the sole sub-male adult would fly back in this mating season and Gujarat was one of the chosen sites for the national conservation programme. There is very little chance of the species thriving in the wild.

The bird's status is critical in Maharashtra too, with the last spotting reported in May in Nanaj Wildlife Sanctuary. "There were three birds in Nannaj but two died," said a senior forest officer. "For the last few years, there has been irregular sighting of one female. It won't be wrong to say that the GIB is extinct here."

The Ministry of Environment Forest had proposed a breeding facility in Kutch.

Eggs would be brought to the safe location, the chicks would be hand-reared and then released in the wild.

"The GIB never got as much support from the government as the Gir lion," said Devesh Gadhavi of the Corbett Foundation, who has long worked on conserving the species.

"Despite so many requests by different people, no action was taken to make the power lines underground, which is one of the main reasons for the high mortality rate of the species.

So many times, the issue was raised in State Board for Wildlife (SBWL) meeting, but the power lines are still standing tall. We have lost all males, and if the situation persists, we will lose the last six females as well. I am surprised to see that the same state that so vehement about 'Karuna Abhiyan' is allowing this species to go extinct!"

One of the reasons the breeding programme not taking off is because of a tussle between Gujarat and Rajasthan over sharing of eggs, said a source. Gujarat was assumed to be a better site for the programme because of its success with conservation programmes. "Initially, we had sought eggs from Rajasthan to be hatched here, since Gujarat did not have such a large population of birds. But the neighbouring state was not willing to give them," said the official.

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